JERUSALEM (VINnews) — A nine-member panel of judges in Israel’s Supreme Court declared Thursday that the Regulation Law legislated by the Knesset in 2017 is unconstitutional and invalid. Eight of the judges voted to accept the petition submitted by 17 Palestinian local governments and three human rights organizations, with one judge, Noam Solberg, dissenting.
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The Regulation Law was designed to retroactively legalize Israeli settlements in the West Bank Area C under the Oslo Accords. It is meant to “regulate” the status of about 2,000 to 4,000 residences in 16 settlements which were built on Palestinian-owned lands. The Knesset passed the legislation 60 to 52, on February 6, 2017. According to the law, the land on which the residences are built will remain that of the legal owners, but their usage will be expropriated by the State. In exchange, the Palestinian owners will be compensated at a rate of 125%, or receive alternate lands whenever possible.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut wrote in her ruling that “the wish to find a simple solution to the problem of construction in Jewish settlements after the governing bodies themselves contributed to this situation over the years is understandable. The prevention of evacuation and destruction of houses built in good faith is a worthy and important goal but it cannot justify such a severe harming of the right to ownership and the right to dignity and equality of the Palestinian populace.”
Solberg dissented because he maintained that the court should not have interfered with a law which could have significant political ramifications. He added that the law was meant to solve an impossible situation whereby Jews cannot purchase any land from Palestinians in Judea and Samaria, since the Palestinians are threatened with death for the sale.
“Let us consider: 3,455 buildings both private and public are seemingly situated at present on private Palestinian land and require regulation. It is impossible to overestimate the political meaning of evacuating and demolishing such a large number of buildings in a region whose status is under bitter dispute for decades within the Israeli public as well as between Israel and the rest of the world.”
Right-wing MK’s reacted angrily to the new ruling. Health Minister Yuli Edelstein declared that “the Supreme Court has lost its touch. It has morphed into a legislative, executive and judicial body at the same time. We must put an end to this. The way to do this is through the Override Clause (the Knesset will override the court on certain laws). If the Supreme Court will not recognize its limitations the Knesset will have to mark its limitations.”
Knesset Speaker Yariv Levin reacted sharply, stating that “the court trampled today in its usual manner Israeli democracy and the basic rights of many Israeli citizens. The Supreme Court is taking mighty steps towards an unprecedented constitutional crisis in Israel. The Knesset will not remain silent again in the face of the continued harming of its authority and status.”
Former Justice Minister MK Ayelet Shaked said that the court’s decision proved the importance of implementing the override clause so that “the Knesset can regulate once and for all the relationship between the judiciary and the legislative arm.”
Officials close to Prime Minister Netanyahu said in response to the ruling that declaring sovereignty over these regions would solve the problem of the Regulation Law and enable the state to implement it.
There is nothing new here the court is out of control and can do what it wants
Idreal needs a real constitution and take control of a court that sees itself as the sole arbitrator of law.
The judge’s home is situated on land that used to be under Arab control at some point. So I suggest that we start by demolishing that and returning the plot of land to the Arabs. After all, we wouldn’t want to have a situation where laws don’t apply to those who make them, now do we?
Leftie judges know no borders.
It’s a worldwide pandemic.